, 1887-09-03
ANEcDoTe OF MgNDeLsso4N.

Detecting One # Sharp in Twenty-sIx
Violins, with Chorus and Orchestra.
Carl Zerrahn, the veteran conductor of
the Boston Handel and Haydn society,
spent the month of July ON Staten Island
To talk with him, no one would imagine
that his Boston career alone extends over
thirty-four years and that before he set
tied in the New England capital he had
travelled through the length and breadth
of the United States for six years as n
member of the famous Germania orches-
ira. lie is still hale, hearty and vigor-
Gus, a ~tireless worker, and bubbles over
with enthusiasm so soon as he gets into
the company of musicians. He has an
neXhaustible fund of anecdote and remin-
%iscence, and, like those who remain of his
old associates, loves to recall the pioneer
work done by the Germania in behalf of
orchestral music over a generation ago.
Here is one of Mr.. Zerrahn's favorite
anecdotes which he repeated to some
musical friends over a glass of Wurz-
burger: at was in 1912 or '43, / am not
sure of the year, hat l went to Schwerin
to attend a music festival which Mendels-
sohn was to conduct. Now YOU know
Mendelssohn was a great musician and it
was not necessary for him to resort to
tricks to advertise himself, but at this
festival occurred an incident which still
lives in the memory of German musicians
as the Mendelssohnsche Els Geschichte'-
the Mendelssohn T sharp story. You
may explain 1t to suit yourselves. The
orchestra was a large one-twenty-six
violins headed by Ferdinand David-and
the chorus about 500 voices. AT the last
general rehearsal for st. Paul in the
chorus, % great is the depth Mendels-
sohn suddenly raped on his desk to COM
mand silence and said: AT one of the
last violin stands somebody played F
sharp instead of F. His friend David
Immediately jumped up and went from
stand to stand inspecting the parts. When
he reached the last he cried out; I've
found it, Herr Doctor; here is
the F sharp OF course the mu-
sicians and singers were lost in admira-
tion of such acuteness of hearing, and after
the rehearsal when l went to the beer
house with some of the orchestra players
nothing was to be heard except express
sions of wonder at DIR. Mendelssohn's keen
ear. Now I leave 1t to any conductor to
tell whether there ever has existed or can
exist an ear able to detect one F sharp In
twenty-six v~ioltns, with chorus, organ and
orchestra playing tutti. But hear the
sequel While we were talking about the
incident in came a ~violinist who had sat
at the last desk. Immediately he was.
surrounded.
How was 1t with that F sharp
"a very singular performance that F
sharp said the fiddler dryly. DO you
know, my partner belongs to the military
band and had to go on parade, so he was
absent from rehearsal this morning; and
when DR.. Mendelssohn heard that F
sharp which the ccncertmeister found in
my part / was engaged in putting on a
new string
and the whole thing was a petty CON
spiracy between Mendelssohn and David
to exploit the tormeryn
81 don't explain it; but the sharp before
the F was written in lead pencil, and you
can't hear one f sharp under such circum-
stances, can you now2 and Mendelssohn
was not dependent on such tricks for his
reputation, was hef''-New York Tribune.